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1999
PRESIDENTIAL
The
Challenge
Chaos or
Community
Rebecca
.
glimmers
173
ADDRESS
of
Diversity:
Skaggs
We live in a world
poised
on the threshold of a new
century;
not only
a new
century
but a new millennium. There is no
way
to antici- pate fully
what that
means,
but we can
gather
clues from some of the
we have been
getting
in the last few
years. Certainly,
our world as we know it is
clearly changing. Technology
at which we can
only guess.
This is bring-
opportunities -challenges
ing
the
geographical
world closer –
tling,
is
presenting
the
tap
of a button can link one to
is even
possible
to
shop
on experiment
learning
more accessible thing important
-the
community ing
and interaction between
Europe
or Africa or Asia – if you know how to do it. This alone is star-
but there is also the
potential
for isolation. It is easier to sit at home and “discuss”
things
with
people you
never see on the “Net.” It
the
“WEB,”
and education is beginning to
with distance
learning
and non-traditional
tion. All of this
development
is
great
in that it makes education
and more available. But it leaves out some-
The faces of America
educational
and economic
forms of educa-
and
created
by
the
classroom,
the bond-
and
student,
and the
feeling
and similar dreams
Now our world arly
studies show
clearly the
“minority”
professor
among
the students that we are all in this
together.
are also
changing.
There was a time when the
majority
of
people
in North America looked
similar,
had similar
backgrounds,
for the future. Events like the two world wars bonded
people
in a common cause
against
a common
enemy.
is and has been
changing.
that the
past “majority”
as more and more faces take on a
variety
of
colors, shapes
and
styles accompanied by
as many different
languages,
educa-
tional and economic
backgrounds, recent conference on
elementary
Demographic
and schol-
is
quickly becoming
and
ways
of
living
life. At one education,
the
speaker pointed
out
1
174
.
that in some California classrooms there are sometimes as many as fifty different
languages represented. And,
that is not
only
California. The face of America is changing and with it the comfortable
assumption
of life as we have known it.
By
comfortable I mean, it is
always
easier to speak
the same
language
as
everyone,
to have similar
backgrounds,
to have similar
understandings
of
history,
and similar dreams for the future,
similar
perspectives
about life and how the world is.
Furthermore,
I
submit,
that the
challenge
of
diversity
not
only exists within the
spheres
of
ethnicity, culture,
and
language.
The chal- lenge
exists in a more
disconcerting
form within
Christianity
and even within Pentecostalism. We have heard a lot about this
during
this con- ference in
Springfield.
Diversity
in itself is not
inherently good
or
bad;
rather it is some- thing
to which one must
respond:
either it can create a
meaningless multiplicity
of
divisions,
conflict and chaos or it can be embraced to become a rich
tapestry
of
colors,
a mosaic of
images,
a
community
of each
part contributing
to the whole. The
image
I like is a stained
glass window in which
portions
viewed
separately
make
up
a chaos of col- ors but
together they
create a picture.
God seems to have ordained
diversity by
nature itself: consider in nature the
multiplicity
of
colors, styles
of
animals,
kinds and
shapes
of plants,
even insects. The
picture
of Jesus in the
Gospels
is
given
from four
perspectives. Although
some of the material is
similar,
different perspectives
of Jesus are evident. Paul often used the
body
with its many parts
to
explain
the
working
of individuals within the church
– there are different kinds of
gifts,
different kinds of
services,
different kinds of
working (1
Cor.
12:4-6),
even different kinds of
tongues (1 Cor.
12:28).
Diversity
can build the
uniqueness
of each individual into a har- monious
unity
or it can lead to chaos. The Tower of Babel is
perhaps the earliest
example
of how
diversity
can create chaos. God used diver- sity
of
languages
to distract the
people
from their
goal.
In later
times, Israel
experienced
moral
relativity
when
everyone
did what was
right in their own
eyes, ultimately missing
God’s desired level of holiness. The Corinthian
church,
a church full of
gifts,
misused these to create divisions, competition among
the members and
general disunity. So, obviously diversity
can lead to chaos.
God’s
purpose
for
diversity, however,
is different than this.
Perhaps the clearest
example
can be found in Jesus’ own
prayer
in John 17 where Jesus
prays
that the
disciples (and by
extension
us) may
be one as he and the Father are one. Jesus
emphatically prayed “may they
be brought
to
complete unity” (John 17:21).
Merrill C.
Tenney,
the late New Testament scholar and Dean of the Wheaton Graduate
School,
2
175
makes some remarkable
points
about this
concept.
He
says
the
concept can be understood
by analyzing
what
unity is alongside
what it is not.
Unity
is not
zrnanimity. Unanimity
means “absolute concord of opinion
within a group of people.” Nowhere in the Bible does the Lord say
that
everyone
must think
exactly
alike or even
agree
on
every topic. There is
plenty
of room for different
perspectives (like
the
pictures
of Jesus or the different
explanations
of faith and works
by
Paul and James for
example).
These differences
complement
each other. Like the mosaic or stained
glass window, they help
to
complete
the
picture with various hues.
Secondly, unity
is not
zrniformity,
that
is,
“oneness or sameness of organization
or ritual.”
Again, Scripture
does not mandate
things
like the order of
worship
or the exact
way
we
worship. Rather,
it
conveys the
atmosphere
which should
permeate
our services and leaves room for
diversity
of individual
operations. Thirdly, unity
is not union which “implies political
affiliation without
necessarily including
individual agreement.” Belonging
to
something
without
personal
commitment is not what
unity
is about either.
None of these
three-unanimity, uniformity,
or
union-get
at the “heart” of what Jesus means
by unity. Unity
involves
something
dif- ferent than total
agreement,
sameness of
practice
or ritual or
political affiliation. The
key
to Jesus’
concept
of
nature of the
–
unity
can be found in the
very
Trinity
itself “the oneness of inner heart and essential purpose through
the
possession
of a common interest or a common life” while
I
maintaining
the
uniqueness
of each individual’s
gifts
and functions.
This idea is summarized in 1 Corinthians 12 where Paul talks about diversities of
gifts
but
by
the same
Spirit;
the
many parts
of the
body, but one functioning
body; many individuals,
but one unit. The
key
is the same
Spirit.
The
Holy Spirit
unifies the various
gifts
into one col- orful
mosaic;
all the
parts
into one
functioning body,
the multitude of individuals into one
integrated body
united in
worship
and committed to
fulfilling
God’s will.
This
spiritual unity
has been seen
through
the
ages. Irrespective
of geography, time, space, education, nationality,
Christians have been one in the same
Spirit.
So we can see the links between Paul of Tarsus, St. Thomas
Aquinas
of
Italy,
Luther of
Germany, Wesley
of
England, and
Moody
of America; all are
creating
the mosaic of God’s
kingdom by
the same
Spirit.
I
suggest
that this
sharing
of a common
purpose
to do God’s will and live a holy life in community with
others,
is the nature of unity, and . —-. – -. — —
lMerrill C.
Tenney, Gospel of John (Grand Rapids,
MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1980),
248.
‘
3
– – – 176
– –
of the
community into the
twenty-first people
were in
understand
should strive as we
go
so power-
work, Christians
for which we as Pentecostals
century.
The church started out that
way.
In Acts 2
Jerusalem from
“every
nation under heaven”
(2:5).
At Pentecost the
Holy Spirit
unified
diversity
into a community
ful that the first church was bom. This
unity
in diversity was the reverse of the chaos of
diversity
at the Tower of Babel when no one could
each other
(Gen. 11). At Pentecost,
of a sudden,
everyone
could understand
guage.” Although, through
the
ages
the
Holy Spirit
has continued
sadly
there has not
always
been
unity
in
diversity.
and even Pentecostals we see divisions and conflict.
At the turn of the
century,
the Azusa Street
experience
experience
of
unity
and
community.
bonded
together “by
by
the
Holy Spirit,
all the
message
“in their own lan-
to
Among
revived the Sources record that there were
as well as women who were
many
diverse ethnic
people represented
the same
Spirit.” Truly,
there was “neither Jew nor Greek,
neither male nor
female;”
all were one in Christ. Within a short time, however,
there was division based on race.
Today,
we
especially as Pentecostals should be united
irrespective
of
racial,
social
status,
in our world.
gender
or ethnic differences.
Right now, community Actually,
quality
Omish
recently
wrote:
is an
important concept
it has been shown to be
significant
to
physical healing
and of life as well as for human survival. On this
theme,
Dr. Dean
likely
People who are lonely, depressed and isolated are three to five times more to
develop serious illnesses or die prematurely than those who have close ties with
friends, relatives and community members.
I’m not aware of any factor in medicine (not diet, not smoking, not exer- cise, not stress, not genetics, not dmgs, not surgery) that has a
on our
greater impact
quality of life, incidence of illness and premature death than the heal- of love and
intimacy. Yet the need for love and intimacy often
unfulfilled.
ing power
only macy among
Intimacy spent people truly
goes When I talk of love’s
impact on our health, I am not referring to love in romantic terms.
Rather, anything that promotes feelings of love, inti-
and community is healing and makes us whole. This can include love
friends and family members and even love for a pet. Love can also be spiritual or religious.
is in increasingly short supply today. In the past, most
their entire lives in the same towns or
people
neighborhoods,
where other
knew them and they knew everyone. Now, many people live in isolation.
Studies suggest that loving and being loved, harmonious communica- tion and physical contact can affect the body in very powerful and positive
ways.
42
Examples: One study of couples who had been married an average of
years
found that those who constantly argued had significantly weaker immune defenses than those who did not fight.
4
simply
177
Researchers saw the same effect with newlyweds. Those who were neg- ative or hostile while discussing problems showed a drop in immune pro- tection during the next 24 hours. The immune protection of harmonious cou- ples In
did not decline.
another amazing demonstration of the power of love, students who
watched a
documentary
about Mother Teresa
serving
the
poor
of Calcutta showed a
significant increase in disease-fighting antibodies.
Love also protects the body by calming the heart, lowering blood pres- sure and reducing the destructive effects of anxiety.
As Dr. Dean Omish
emphasizes,
There is also
says,
“Those of us
innovators,
people.
Debra Learning,” put ter job
of
instilling
justice seeking.”3
waste needed
talent, hostile
groups,
or do by
we need
community
even for our
in education. Dr. Saundra
appreciation
Director
of “Racial
Legacies
and
and
possible?
physical well-being.
a call for
community
Bunce,
Assistant Professor of
Sociology
at Mount St.
Mary’s College
in
higher
education must
actively participate…We need to be cultural
bridge builders, mediators, negotiators, helpful
and
highly
concerned members of a community family. If we choose to remain distant and
aloof,
then we cannot
hope
for recon-
ciliation, greater tolerance,
or intercultural in our
young
The
academy
must do more
Humpheys, Project
it like this:
“Colleges
and Universities need to do a bet-
in students a sense of responsibility not
only
to indi- . vidual achievement and fairness but also to
community-building
I can
add,
this is the work of the church as well.
The
challenge
is clear: we are faced with the wonderful
diversity
of
our world. But do we allow it to cause isolation and
fragmentation,
and
breakup society
into
mutually
envious and
we
respond by helping people
make connections
first
modeling unity among
ourselves and then
building bridges
instead of
widening
chasms? Is
community
Jesus
always
addressed
people
where
they
were and whoever
they
were and
challenged
them to be
transformed,
not
by adopting any one
social standard or cultural
idea,
or even one ecclesiastical
things.
He called them to follow him and then to transform the world
around them
by loving
as he loved. For
example,
when he
spoke
to the
he transcended the
squabbles
about the
place
of
worship
and focused on the
key
issue of transformation
To become instruments to fulfill Christ’s
prayer
to
complete unity
involves several
things
on our
part.
It
involves immersion in the
Scriptures
the vehicle of his love can we ever
hope
to
bridge
Samaritan
woman,
brought
becoming –
way
of doing
by
the
Spirit. that we
may
be
and
knowledge
of God.
Only by
2Racial Legacies and Learning: An .American Dialogue, 13. 3Racial Legacies and Learning: An American Dialogue, 3.
5
178
differences. It involves
listening
to the
many
voices of our
world,
so that we can
help
create a new
language
of
empathy
and
compassion rather than one of divisiveness and
oppression.
It involves a vision which,
as President Brzezinski of the
McGregor
School of Antioch University puts it, “sees diversity
as an asset rather than a liability.”4 It calls for better
listening, thinking
and
talking.
As one
educator,
Anne Leo Ellis
wrote, “First,
we must listen.
Carefully, thoughtfully,
without interruption,
without hidden
agendas,
without
preconceptions. Next, we need to think. And talk. With each other. As
openly
as
possible,
for healing, comprehension, reconciliation-friendship.”5
And most importantly,
as
Pentecostals,
it requires that we live
up
to the wonder- ful
heritage
of our
tradition,
that we
truly
be “one” in the
Holy Spirit.
We as Pentecostals have what is needed to make this transformation a
reality-to
weave the diverse
pieces
into one
glorious
fabric- because we have the
Spirit.
The Spirit allows for
complexity
but blends the
many parts
into one unified
body.
The
Spirit
takes the
complexity of
diversity
often
leading
to
misunderstanding
and divisiveness and turns it into
opportunities
and
possibilities.
The
Spirit
transforms our fragmented
and divided world into one in which
truly
there is no Jew nor
Greek,
no male or
female,
no rich or poor, no national distinctions. The
Spirit
takes chaos and creates
community, unity, oneness,
whole- ness.
By
the
Holy Spirit
we can be united toward the
goal
to be one so that the world will know that Christ was sent to bring love and
redemp- tion for all
people
and all races and cultures.
This
Society
for Pentecostal Studies conference in
Springfield
in March 1999 has moved the discussion on
diversity
in a positive direc- tion
by articulating
issues and
suggesting
models for resolution. Clearly,
we all are
seeking reconciliation, resolution,
and
healing
of divisions
among races, gender, denominations, cultures, theology.
The
question
is where do we
go
from here? As we
approach
the new
century, my hope
as president, is that we will
put
feet on our vision and action to our words. We must not allow our words to drift into silence as we return to our
busy
schedules. We have
agreed
on
many concepts
and issues but we are not
yet
clear what these ideas look like when translated into real-life situations.
As we look forward to the next
millennium, the challenge
is to bring
about a
community
that is unified in
spirit
and at the same time appreciate
the richness of our
unique qualities. Perhaps imagery again conveys
the idea: our
goal
should be
community
constructed like a salad rather than
soup.
Sometimes we use the
figure
of a melting pot to – – .–. — —- n__- —— —
4Racial Legacies and Learning: An American Dialogue, 13.
5Anne Leo Ellis, ed., First We Must Listen: Living in a Multicultural Society (New York,
NY: Friendship Press, 1996), 7.
6
179
describe a blending of differences. The
figure
of a salad is better. In a salad,
each item is
individual, contributing
to the
perfection
of the whole,
each
part ultimately creating
the whole without
losing
its indi- viduality. Soup, however, although
constructed of
many
different ele- ments,
blends the elements to create
something
new and the individu- ality
of the
parts
is lost. Our
challenge
in the
coming years
is to trans- late our ideas about
diversity
into real life contexts. For
example,what will
appreciative worship
sound like when it represents
diversity?
How do we embrace
diversity
and deal with issues such as homosexuals as pastors
or unisex
marriages? Obviously,
this task is not
going
to be easy.
Since the issue itself is so
multi-faceted,
our solution will need to be
complex
and multi-faceted. We will need to hear the
many
voices and
perspectives prayerfully
and
sensitively. May
the
Spirit guide
us and
give
us wisdom!
7
